Different Than I Thought
by Shadowed Night Sky
Summary: It was strange how she always thought they were nothing alike, when in truth, they were so similar. She guessed he really was different than she thought.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One.**

Everyone in Titans Tower froze as the alarm went off. Immediately, they all rushed to the Main Room, where they discovered Beast Boy and Cyborg standing over some boxes.

"What's the problem?" asked Robin instantly, using his leader voice.

"All the lights are broken!" exclaimed Cyborg, holding up the Christmas lights.

"Yeah, and look! All the mini reindeer are gone!" Beast Boy told Robin, showing him the broken decorations.

It was Christmas time, and as the Titans Tradition stated, all the Titans were gathered in Titans Tower for the holiday. Robin assigned everyone to different jobs, whether it was cooking Christmas dinner, or vacuuming the carpets. Robin was usually pretty stressed out around this time, trying to get everything to work out, and right now, he focused the famous BatClan glare onto the two guys.

Beast Boy chuckled nervously as he set the reindeer down. "Dude, we need unbroken decorations," he told his leader.

Robin rolled his eyes under his mask and glanced over the crowd of Titans. "Fine, Argent, Bumblebee, you two are assigned to…"

"Can't," interrupted Bumblebee. "I was assigned to the Christmas dinner, remember?"

"I can't either, I have to get the Christmas tree," Argent said.

"Okay, then Speedy, Aqualad, you two…"

"I can't either," said Aqualad. "I'm cleaning the Main Room, remember?"

Robin was losing his patience. "Speedy, Raven, you two replace the Christmas decorations." He paused, waiting for one of the two to say something, but neither did. He let his breath out. "Good, now everyone, get back to work. And Beast Boy? Don't press the alarm again or else you'll get twenty hours of extra training."

The Main Room was nearly empty within seconds, leaving only Cyborg in it to deal with the broken remains of Christmas's past.

xxxxx

Speedy and Raven headed down to the garage together, only stopping to get coats and shoes. The Titans East had a car that was similar to the T-Car, the only difference was the color, which was black instead of white and blue. Speedy plopped down into the driver's seat, while Raven slipped into the passengers seat.

They had been driving for nearly ten minutes before Speedy glanced at the violet-haired girl sitting silently next to him. "So," he said, trying to start up a conversation. "What do you want for Christmas?"

Raven threw him an incredulous glance. "I don't know," she deadpanned.

"Well, then, what should I get you?"

"I don't know."

"Do you like action movies?"

"I don't know."

"Have you ever seen one?"

"I don't know."

"Do you like sports?"

"I don't know." Speedy stared at her. "The light's green," she added.

Speedy hit the gas pedal, and the car started moving again. "C'mon Raven, tell me a little bit about yourself," he pleaded. "This car is too damn quiet. Say something other then 'I don't know'."

Raven glared at him, but he didn't seem at all affected by the ice-cold look. "Fine, my favorite color is blue."

"That's hard to figure out," muttered Speedy.

"What?"

"I said you made that kind of obvious, you're entire costume is blue, and you're wearing blue pants, a blue coat, and blue gloves," Speedy pointed out as he pulled into a parking space. "C'mon, let's get shopping."

xxxxx

For the next three hours, Speedy and Raven wandered around Jump City buying Christmas decorations, and debating on what they should get Robin for Christmas. Perhaps it was the Christmas feeling in the air, or the fact the Speedy was a complete crack-up, but Raven was actually having a good time.

"So that's why you filmed Robin on the roof? Because you were mad at him?"

"Oh, I wasn't mad at him, I was furious!" Speedy replied. They were talking about the famous video Speedy had made. He had dubbed it Robin and Starfire on the roof. He had made it two years ago, when the alien and the leader were still dating. It was a complete make-out session between the two while they were on the roof, together, alone. He had shown it on the big-screen TV in Titans Tower to all the Titans. Bumblebee decided to leave early that day, so she could return to Steel City with her entire team, because Robin looked like an erupting volcano.

"How long have you known Robin?" asked Raven, as she sipped her coffee. The two were sitting in a park, enjoying hot drinks.

Speedy shrugged. "We met when we were twelve, but as civilians, we didn't really meet until we were sucked into that dimension with the Master of Games."

"Mmm."

They sat in silence for a few moments before Speedy spoke up again. "Has Beast Boy actually made you eat his tofu stuff?"

"He tries to. I usually throw him out a window."

Speedy snorted. "Remind me to stay away from windows when you're angry at me."

"Then I'll just send you to another dimension."

"Remind me to stand near a window when you're angry at me."

Raven smiled into her cup. "I will."

xxxxx

At six o' clock that night, Speedy and Raven finally returned to Titans Tower. Raven deposited their purchases into the garage, while Speedy put the keys away, and took his coat off.

"Well, that was fun," he laughed. "We should have Christmas decorations broken more often."

"Don't even think about it," Raven replied, closing the garage door behind her.

Speedy grinned but didn't reply. They reached the Main Room shortly afterwards and opened the door, discovering all the Titans eating dinner. "We're home," shouted Speedy into the din.

"Good, did you get everything?" asked Robin, as he nearly fell over Beast Boy.

"Pretty sure we did," Speedy replied. "Don't you think you should tell Hot Spot to power down?"

"What?" Robin spun around, and fell over Beast Boy again.

"I'm joking Robin! Lighten up, you're no fun when you're stressed."

Robin glared at him but as he opened his mouth to make a retort, Cyborg's voice boomed out over the noise, "Video Game Tournament!"

"Catch ya later!" Speedy said, racing towards the couch to grab a controller.

Robin shook his head and glanced at the silent sorceress. "Did you survive?" he asked.

"I, surprisingly enough, actually had a fairly good time," she said, before turning and leaving for her room. She had a faint smile on her face as she shut the door and repeated, "A fairly good time."


	2. Chapter 2

**By the way, I call the tower in Jump City Titans Tower, and the tower in Steele City East Tower. Just so you know which tower I'm talking about! (Though East Tower is kind of obvious.)**

**Anyways, after having to read that completely pointless note, you may now continue with the story! Enjoy!  
**

**Chapter Two.**

It was six months after Christmas, and it was beautiful weather in Jump City. The five Titans there were able to relax since there had been no crimes where the teen-aged superheroes were needed.

The same could not be said in Steele City, where a major crime spree had been going on for the past two months. Every time the exhausted teens had collapsed in their tower, the alarm went off only seconds later. Bumblebee had to physically restrain Speedy from breaking the alarm after the first month.

After the crime spree had apparently ended, Aqualad suggested visiting the Jump City Titans. Though he said he just wanted to see them, and challenge the guys to a video game match, both Bumblebee and Speedy saw right away he had another reason for wanting to head over to Titans Tower. If the alarm went off, they wouldn't be able to hear it ten thousand miles away.

But both of them wanted to get away as well, and the twins were too enthusiastic about the idea to say otherwise, so Bumblebee had called up Robin to inform him that they were coming over to visit whether he liked it or not, and hung up on him before he could even open his mouth to say hello. The Titans East then piled into their blue T-Sub, and started flying over to Jump City. It wasn't exactly the ride Bumblebee had been hoping for. The twins were arguing in Spanish over the intercom, Speedy had some rock music on full blast in his pod, and Aqualad had conveniently shut off his communication, and was positively ignoring Bumblebee's frantic waves to him. The aquatic prince had a very peaceful nap for the next two hours, while his leader practically tore off the steering wheel from having to listen to the twins argument and the archer's music.

Finally, the T-Sub landed in the docking bay of Titans Tower. Bumblebee was in a very bad mood, but the guys of the team appeared quite happy.

Starfire immediately rushed forwards and gave everyone a huge hug, while Mas y Menos gave her a faded flower that they had picked before the start of the trip. Beast Boy greeted Aqualad with a high five, Cyborg and Bumblebee gave each other a quick hug before pulling away blushing, while Robin and Speedy did a very formal handshake, before Speedy started laughing, and the two did a knuckle crack. Raven just stood there with her smile hidden in the shadows of her hood.

The Titans headed to the Main Room and instantly got sorted into their usual groups. Raven sat down near the window to read, Mas y Menos went off to explore the Tower, Aqualad, Speedy, Beast Boy, Robin, and Cyborg had a video game contest, while Bumblebee and Starfire sat talking at the table.

Two hours passed, and the contest ended, with Speedy as the champion, much to Cyborg's dismay. He told the archer straight off that after they took a break, the two were going to have a rematch. Beast Boy was trying to contain his laughter at his best friend's defeat, but he wasn't doing a very good job with it.

Mas y Menos were still missing from the Main Room, and Raven was still curled up in a corner reading her book about a mysterious serial killer. The rest of the group were talking among themselves earnestly, and laughing at a story Bumblebee was telling.

Raven wasn't paying any attention to it. Her focus was on her book which she had been reading for the past month. She just reached the end of one of the final chapters, when she heard a male voice directly above her.

"Wanna play?"

Raven's eyes snapped up, her violet eyes taking in the red-headed boy in front of her. "Play what?" she asked begrudgingly.

"Demons and Dragons," he replied, gesturing to the video game.

Dead silence filled the room, with every eye staring straight at the two of them. The four Jump City Titans were waiting for Raven to flatly refuse before blasting Speedy away from her like she did with Beast Boy. Aqualad and Bumblebee were too astonished to expect anything. Raven's monotone voice filled the room as she answered Speedy's strange question. "Sure."

She set her book down, stood up, brushed herself off, walked steadily past Speedy, and picked up a controller. "So, how does this thing work exactly?" she asked him.

Speedy grinned and sat down beside, reaching for a controller. "Okay, this "A" button is for jumping. This gray button here is for moving, like this." He proceeded in explaining to her the controls, neither of them paying any attention to the gaping teens behind them.

After nearly a half hour of telling Raven the rules of the game and making sure she had mastered the art of the controller, Speedy and Raven entered a fierce competition, Raven always losing, and Speedy not daring to let her win, lest she blow him away to another dimension. Raven discovered she actually enjoyed playing video games, even though she lost every single round. They played it for the rest of the visit, and Cyborg never did get his rematch with Speedy.

xxxxx

After the Titans East had departed, Beast Boy turned to Raven, his green eyes huge on his face. "Wanna play video games with me?" he asked.

Raven glared at him. "No," she deadpanned, before turning, and leaving the room with a grand swirl of her cloak.

Beast Boy stared after her, still in shock after what had happened earlier. "She said yes," he murmured to no one in particular. "She played video games with Speedy!"

He stumbled out of the room in a daze, still muttering to himself. Cyborg chuckled as he left for the garage. "What is so funny, Friend Cyborg?" asked Starfire innocently.

"I never thought I'd see Raven play video games and actually enjoy it," he told her. "And with Speedy nonetheless."

xxxxx

Raven couldn't believe that she had actually agreed to Speedy's question. It was so out of character for her. It was the night after and she was still mulling over what had happened. She sat up on her bed, and lifted up into her meditating pose, repeating her mantra over and over again. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos. Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos." She breathed a sigh. "Azarath, Metrion, Zinthos. Azarath, Metrion, Zin..." Her communicator went off.

Raven's amethyst eyes darkened as she grabbed her communicator. "What?" she snapped into it.

"Would this be a bad time to call?"

"Speedy? Why are you calling me?"

The archer shrugged. "Well, if you don't want me to..."

"No, no, that's not it, I just...well...didn't...expect you to call, that's all."

Speedy grinned. Not many people had seen Raven stuttering over her words. "So, anything new happened since I visited?"

"Not really. Beast Boy still can't believe I actually 'took up the controller' as he put it."

Speedy studied her. "Well, to tell you the truth, I can't believe you did either."

"That makes three of us. But, I had fun. Cyborg has some real competition in you."

Speedy's rich laugh reached her ears. "So Aqualad and Beast Boy are both horrible, and Cyborg and I are both great. I wonder where Robin is in that area."

"I don't know. He's a guy of many talents."

"He has to be. He was raised by Batman."

Raven smiled thinly. "You've seen him without his mask on, haven't you?"

"I told you we met as civilians."

"I have."

Raven felt Speedy's surprised stare. "You have?"

"Well, not exactly. I don't know if he told you, but we have a bond, a mental link. I entered his mind once and saw some of his memories."

"You can do that?"

"Yeah, but I've only done it once."

"So, know you two can like, read each others mind?" Speedy laughed. "And feel each other's emotions?"

"We can communicate telepathically sometimes, and yes, we do feel each other's emotions."

"So, when he was dating Starfire, you could feel everything he was feeling?"

"Yes," Raven answered sourly. "Luckily, I learned how to tune them out."

"Well that's good."

"You have no idea. It's good for him I'll never date."

"Why not?" Speedy eyed her. "I'm sure there are plenty of guys out there who would die for you. Have you ever gotten onto the computer and checked out some fan clubs? There are about twenty clubs that are for guys who are huge fans of Raven."

"And about fifteen billion clubs for girls who are huge fans of the Scarlet Archer?"

"You're missing my point. And anyways, it's more like fifteen hundred."

"Don't make me hang up on you," Raven threatened.

Speedy was about to make a reply when Raven heard the alarm go off in the other Tower. Speedy groaned. "Looks like you'll be saved the trouble. I have to go, but I'll call you tomorrow at eight."

Raven nodded. "I'll be here. Probably."

"Oh, and Raven? Check out The Pretty Bird club on the computer to see just how many fans you do have." And without another word, Speedy shut the communicator, breaking off the contact between the two.

Raven set the round object down and wandered out of the room. She stood, hesitating, in front of the main computer, before sitting down, and typing in the website name. Maybe talking to Speedy was not such a bad idea after all.

**Reviews are an Author's best friend! So Please Review!**


	3. Chapter 3

**This chapter basically shows what the five Titans in Jump City think about the blossoming relationship between our favorite archer and sorceress.**

**You also get a glimpse of my take on Speedy's past and how he first met Robin.  
**

**The time distance between Beast Boy's reaction, and Cyborg's is about three days. Starfire's is the day after Cyborg's, and Robin's is about a week after that. And it doesn't matter when Raven's is. Honestly, it doesn't matter when any of them are, but just in case!**

**This story is actually set about two years after Tokyo, and Starfire and Robin broke up. **

**Here are the ages:**

**Raven - 17  
Speedy - 18  
Robin - 18  
Cyborg - 19  
Aqualad - Do Atlantians count their years the same as humans? I mean, Amazon Warriors are immortal, while Kryptonians live longer then humans, so...yeah. Well, if they do, then he's 18 as well.  
Starfire - 16  
Beast Boy - 15  
Mas y Menos - 12 (Just how young _are_ they?)**

**Since I'm not planning any special guest appearances of the honorary Titans, that's it for now, and you are finally allowed to continue with the story. Enjoy!**

**Chapter Three.**

There was only one thing Beast Boy could say. Raven had changed.

It wasn't that he didn't like the new Raven. If fact, he rather did. She smiled a little more, didn't snap at him (okay, maybe a little), was much less reluctant to join the others on an outing to pizza, and one time he caught her reading the instruction manual to a video game.

It was strange, Beast Boy had to admit that. He knew that Speedy had something to do with it. Every night, at exactly eight o' clock, no matter what she was doing, Raven would enter her room, shut the door, and not come out until morning. The other four Titans were wondering what she was doing, though Robin would never admit he was curious. So finally, Beast Boy decided to enter her room as a fly and see what she was up to.

Usually Raven sensed him, and kicked him viciously out of the room. Literally. But when he entered this time, she was nestled under the covers of her bed, on her stomach, and talking to someone over the communicator. It took Beast Boy a second to recognize Speedy's laugh.

They were calling each other every night? To say Beast Boy was astonished was a sad understatement. So Speedy was the reason Raven seemed so...un-Ravenlike.

But, considering he hadn't been thrown out the window in about one month, the green changeling wasn't complaining. Besides, he liked Speedy, though it stank to play video games with him because he was so good.

Beast Boy often snuck into Raven's room to listen to snatches of conversation between the other two teens. They were just talking about normal stuff, it didn't seem like they were dating at all.

"So Aqualad was running over to try and get Mas out from under the tree, when he actually slipped and landed in a very non-royal manner on his rear."

Raven laughed. _Raven laughed! _Raven never laughed. "So you were the one forced to rescue a poor Spanish boy from a dreadful death in the hollow of a tree?"

"Yeah, and I rescued him doubled over in laughter. Aqualad still won't speak to me."

"That doesn't surprise me. He's probably completely embarrassed by what happened."

"I told you my most embarrassing moment, what was yours?" As much as Beast Boy would've dearly loved to stay and hear what Raven's most embarrassing moment was, he had promised Robin he would be in the Main Room by ten to do the dishes or else he would have to either do ten hours of extra training, or everyone's dishes for a month. He didn't want to do either, so he reluctantly left the room, transformed into a cheetah, and ran as fast as he could down the hallways of the Tower.

xxxxx

Cyborg and Raven were at the movie store trying to find the right film for movie night later. Lately, Raven had been spending her nights in her room, so her friends were lucky she decided she would come out at about midnight to join them.

"So, what do you want to watch tonight?" Every month, a different member drew his name from a hat that Cyborg had. That teen got to pick the movies they watched for movie night that month. It was Raven's turn.

The dark sorceress was browsing through the action movies, before moving onto the horror aisle. Cyborg expected her to pick out one of the new DVD's, but instead, she walked towards a different aisle and picked up a movie. "How about this one?" she suggested, holding up the movie so Cyborg could see the name. It was _Titanic_.

"Okay," agreed Cyborg, surprised. While he and Raven waited in line, he mused over the changes in his little 'sister.'

It was unheard of for Raven to listen to anything that wasn't dark music, watch anything that wasn't horror, read anything that wasn't mystery, and seem like she was actually happy. Yet only yesterday he had seen her listening to some happy pop music with Starfire, she had just picked a famous love story, was reading a book that was a classic for its humor, and hadn't seemed at all depressed in weeks.

_Speedy must be rubbing off on her_, Cyborg decided. He was relieved she hadn't picked up his habit of listening to hard rock. Beast Boy may like that music, but he didn't, and he knew that both Robin and Starfire hated it as well.

"Why are you staring at me?" Raven's voice broke through his thoughts, startling him.

"I was just thinking, and I happened to stare in your direction. How's Titans East doing?" _I'm getting way too good at thinking up excuses_.

"One of Bumblebee's wings broke, but it's almost better. Aqualad tried cooking dinner for her and accidentally blew up the oven, setting the entire kitchen on fire which resulted in Menos getting a burnt hand. Mas sat on Speedy's bow last night and ended up breaking it, so now Speedy has to build another bow and Mas is hiding somewhere in the tower."

"Things are always hectic around there," Cyborg said, rolling his eye.

"Yeah, I know. Speedy told me that he and Bumblebee argue all the time. And Mas y Menos never stop talking, and only Bumblebee is fluent in Spanish, so Aqualad and Speedy have no idea what they're saying half the time."

"Well, I'm really glad that you and Starfire both speak English," said Cyborg grinning. The two didn't say anything else until they were safely in the T-Car and riding back home. Then Cyborg decided to ask the million dollar question. "So, what's going on between you and Speedy?"

Raven's frozen glare trained upon him. "We're really good friends," was all she said. Cyborg nodded, and they were silent for the rest of the drive.

After Raven had left the garage, stating that she was going to be in her room until midnight, Cyborg leaned thoughtfully against the T-Car. He may not be her real brother, and he may not have much experience in relationships, but he could see chemistry when it stood right in front of his face. The others might be shocked to learn it, but there was something going on between the archer and the half-demon, whether the latter wanted to admit it or not. With that, Cyborg suddenly realized he was leaning on his baby, leapt back, horrified, and then quickly bent over the car, making sure there was not a single scratch.

xxxxx

Starfire was humming happily as she floated into her home, carrying about twenty shopping bags while lugging Silkie around on a leash. Raven was just behind her, levitating about five bags with her powers. Only three were hers, the others were Starfire's. While Raven had offered to carry...levitate...more, Starfire positively refused. She enjoyed coming home loaded down with shopping bags.

"Friend Raven, would you join me in the 'girl talk' this afternoon? And perhaps the painting of nails and the doing of hair?"

Raven looked blankly at the alien for a second, before smiling at her friend. "Of course Starfire, why not?"

"Oh, joyous news!" Starfire bounded forwards and enveloped Raven in a bone-crushing hug. "We shall speak of everything to each other!"

"If I still have my voice," choked Raven. The green-eyed alien immediately set her down.

"I apologize, Friend. Are you alright?" asked Starfire anxiously.

"Of course Starfire. I'll see you tonight." Saying so, Raven vanished with a twirl of her royal blue cloak, leaving the alien to her many bags.

As Starfire carted her new belongings up the stairs and into her bright pink room, she started to wonder what secrets she might find out that night when she and Raven had a girl talk. She knew that the three guys of the team were completely clueless to the fact that Raven was interested in Speedy. In fact, Raven herself was clueless. Well, at least that was what the alien thought. As naive to earth's ways as Starfire was, she understood feelings and emotions very well, but she could not always tell what people were thinking.

The thought that Raven was interested in a guy excited Starfire. Her dear friend had often revealed to Starfire during their rare girl talks, that she believed she would never be interested in a guy, nor that a guy would ever be interested in her.

Love fascinated Raven though, Starfire could easily see that. When she had been dating Robin, the two girls had their talks more often, and it was obvious that Raven actually enjoyed listening to what Starfire had to say about dating.

And now the emotionless Azarathian herself was experiencing the beginnings of love. And Starfire was so happy for her friend. She was just worried that Raven might push it away. Tonight, during their girl talk, she would make sure that Raven wouldn't make a mistake, but she would have to use some of her best tricks so Raven wouldn't figure out what she was doing. It never was good to skip a step in love.

xxxxx

Out of the Titans West, Titans East, and all the honorary Titans, the two who got up the earliest were the two birds of the team, Robin and Raven. Every morning at about five, Robin would get up, head down to the kitchen in a T-shirt and sweatpants, make a cup of coffee, and sit down to read the newspaper. Exactly a half-hour later, the doors would slide open and an already uniformed Raven would enter the Main Room, brew herself some tea, join Robin at the table, and sip her beverage silently.

By six, Robin would be finished with the paper, and the two birds would chat for awhile. At about a quarter to seven, Robin would leave and start his practice in the training room, and Cyborg would get up within a half hour.

It was during one of these regular mornings that Raven first talked to one of her fellow teammates about Speedy. Robin had just folded the newspaper and put them down on the table for Cyborg to read if he was interested. Raven set her cup down and stared at Robin's blank mask. "Speedy told me he met you when the two of you were twelve."

Robin, who hadn't been expecting this, looked surprised. "Well...yeah, we did."

"Where did you meet?"

"At a party. We were the only two kids there who had enough common sense to get out of that stifling room. The lights were too bright, the room was too warm, there were too many people there, the older kids were trying to be cool, and the younger kids were acting like brats. We met each other in the orchard, and we started competing. We were racing, and climbing trees, and even arm wrestling. We actually didn't like each other that much."

Raven snorted. "How did you find out Speedy was the same boy? Did you snatch his mask off? Or did you just figure it out."

"Honestly...Batman told me who Green Arrow was."

"Well that's another way to find out. How did he find out who _you_ were? Did Green Arrow tell him, or did he try to become a detective?"

"I told him."

Raven looked slightly surprised. "And I thought BatClan members were all for keeping secrets. How stupid of me." She smiled into her cup as she lifted it up.

When she set the mug down, she noted that Robin looked a little put off by her last comment. But all he said was, "What else has the idiot of an archer told you?"

Raven knew that what he was merely being playful. Robin and Speedy had been best friends for three years. "About his past? Not much, except he was raised by Navajo Indians and was taken in by Green Arrow when he was nine. But he has told me plenty about what's been going on in East Tower. It makes me relieved to be living in Jump City."

"I'm sure."

"I never thought I'd say this, but compared to Titans East, our life seems almost...peaceful. And it makes me appreciate the things I have."

"Like quiet and comfort, bad jokes and tofu?"

"Exactly."

A comfortable silence descended on the room. Robin finally stood up after about fifteen minutes of listening to the chirping birds outside. "I'm gonna go train now," he said, even though she knew exactly what he was doing. As he started to exit the room, he stopped, and turned back to the girl who he considered to be one of his two best friends. "And Raven?" She looked up, her eyes focusing on her leader. "Speedy may seem idiotic and irresponsible at times, but in truth, you and he are very similar in more ways then one."

Raven sat without saying anything for a minute, before making a reply to his statement. "Thanks Robin," she said, not really sure how he had helped.

Robin didn't say anything else. He sent her a grin, and the doors whizzed shut behind him, leaving the dark bird to her thoughts.

xxxxx

Raven sat in the computer room on the second floor in Titans Tower, staring at the screen, which was what she had been doing for the past hour.

She used to never get on the computer, but now she was on it all the time. She enjoyed surfing around, discovering things she didn't know existed before.

But most of all, she enjoyed visiting the Teen Titans fan club websites. She couldn't believe how many fans the Titans had separately, let alone all together. And she herself had a ton of fan clubs.

Raven loved flipping from site to site, reading what people thought about her friends. Some of the Titans had created their own sites, where they got a ton of fan mail. Beast Boy, Cyborg, Argent, Speedy, Kid Flash, and Robin had all created sites. Speedy later confessed to Raven that he actually had created Robin's site, and ended up telling him about six months afterwards.

The first site Speedy had told her about was her favorite. The Pretty Bird Club was all about Raven, and only Raven. It had pictures of her everywhere. Paintings made by little kids, photographs from newspapers, professional drawings, everything. Then there were the newspaper clippings, telling of her victories, or just about her in general. There were clips from fights she'd been in there, and the one interview she had agreed to was on the site as well. It was her favorite site of all.

Both Speedy and Cyborg had helped her create her own site, which got a storm of fan mail once people discovered it was hers. Raven knew for a fact that both Speedy and Robin got ten times as much fan mail separately, most of them from girls. But it didn't matter to her. It gave her a warm feeling to know that there were people out there who cared for her, and respected her.

And it was thanks to Speedy, who first introduced her into this world. Strange, how one of the few boys who she thought she could never be close friends with would have such an impact on her life. It was just weird how all this turned out. Speedy, of all people, who she had always thought was just an arrogant playboy. But he was the one who really showed her the there were people out there who loved her, and would be devastated if something happened to her, even though they had never met her. She owed him so much.

And so, later that night, after Speedy had said his good-bye until tomorrow to Raven, the girl did not respond immediately. Finally, she looked straight into the mask on his face, behind which she knew she was staring into his eyes. She said to him in a soft voice, "Good-bye, and thank you."

Speedy did not miss the emotion in her voice or her eyes. "For what?"

"For everything."

**I had been typing this when an error occurred and I lost the entire Raven part of this chapter. Arghh!**

**If you liked it, then PLEASE REVIEW!!!!!  
**


	4. Chapter 4

**So the T-Car has a special mode on it so it can drive on water, but how does the R-Cycle cross onto dry land?**

**Chapter Four.**

Bumblebee collapsed on her bed, exhausted. She had had an extremely busy day and it was only three o' clock! There had been four prison breakouts which the Titans East had to tend to, and afterwards, one of the training robots had blown up which resulted in the training room being set on fire. Aqualad had quickly put it out, but Bumblebee still had to clean up the aftermath. The guys also expected her to deal with dinner, like she was some kind of gourmet chef. The truth was, out of all of them, Speedy was actually the one who could cook the best. His teammates had discovered this when he made Bumblebee a dinner for her birthday, saying he couldn't think of anything else to get her. It had been delicious, but after discovering everyone loved his food, Speedy had not cooked anything since, not wanting to be dubbed the official cook of Titans East. It would ruin his image, he complained.

Since Titans West would be landing in about half an hour if they were on time, Bumblebee decided to invite them out to pizza instead of ordering in. Speedy had largely complained against this, informing Bumblebee he had some sushi he was planning to have for dinner. Aqualad quickly voted on pizza.

Bumblebee and Cyborg sometimes talked to each other over their communicators. It was only two weeks ago that Cyborg had mentioned Raven and Speedy were calling each other every night. Bumblebee had been surprised. It wasn't like Speedy to call one girl all the time; in fact, she could remember only one girl out of the hundreds he had dated that he had ever been serious about. And now he and Raven were communicating all the time! Speedy and Raven - it seemed so wrong to the Titans East leader. But, Bumblebee had to admit there could be weirder couples. And there were, like the hyper-active Kid Flash and the gothic Jinx.

The girl sighed as she closed her eyes and lay back her head. She wasn't in the mood to think about Speedy's romantic life at the moment. She was too tired. She planned on getting at least fifteen minutes of rest before getting up and...Bumblebee's eyes shot open. There were sounds of the docking bay opening up. Titans West was here early. She would have to wait until night to get her sleep.

xxxxx

The Titans had barely been in East Tower for five minutes and already Raven and Speedy were brawling with the video games. Beast Boy and Aqualad were making bets of which one would win. Beast Boy insisted Speedy would win, but Aqualad was rooting for Raven.

This left the other six chatting among themselves.

"And...I win again!" With a smirk on his face, Speedy set the controller down. "C'mon Raven, you're better then that," he teased.

Raven glared at him. "Let's go again then, shall we?" she challenged him.

"Hey, wanna go out for pizza?" asked Bumblebee, heading over to the couch.

The green changeling leapt up. "I'm in!" Aqualad nodded, standing up as well.

"Nah, I'll stay. I already have food, and we just went for pizza last night. Besides, I've heard enough of all your talking for a lifetime." This last comment earned Speedy a smack on the head from his leader.

"I'll stay too, I'm not that hungry," Raven informed Bee.**  
**

Bumblebee shrugged. "Your loss. Come on guys, lets go!"

Within moments, the two remaining Titans had returned to their game. Raven had actually won a couple, though she suspected Speedy might have gone easy on her.

A little later, Speedy yawned and stood up, before moving towards the kitchen. "Do you like sushi?" he asked the girl, opening the fridge. Raven nodded. "Great, I have more then I can eat."

After a couple of minutes, Speedy set down the food, and got drinks for the two of them. Raven instantly started munching on her dinner as she listened to the game music.

After the two finished eating, Raven grabbed the game controller. "Ready to go another round?" she asked the archer.

Speedy hesitated. "Actually Raven...I was wondering if you wanted to go out Saturday. Like, on a date."

Raven stared at him. The only sound in the room was the music that was still playing. Then her face hardened, and she said in her famous monotone voice, "No."

There was an awkward silence. Raven's thoughts were in a turmoil. To her relief, Speedy finally shrugged and stood up. "Wanna try this game?" he asked.

Raven nodded, and without another word, Speedy switched games. Still feeling uncomfortable, Raven took up the controller. She used her empathy to feel Speedy's emotions. She felt a slight grudge when she discovered he didn't feel surprised that she had refused.

The two remained silent. Beast Boy's voice could be heard long before he entered the room. "Yo, dudes, wanna have a tournament?" he asked, jumping on the couch in between the two teens.

"I'm out," stated Raven icily, standing up.

"Sure." The red-head tossed a controller to the hyper shape-shifter. The other guys, including the twins, hopped onto the couch as well.

"You're goin' down speedster," shouted Cyborg to Speedy.

"In your dreams!" laughed the boy.

"Hey, guys," called Bumblebee. "Starfire just told me about a new store in Jump. We're going to head over there, courtesy of Raven's teleportation. She'll bring me back afterwards."

"All right, see you!" answered Robin without taking his eyes off the screen.

Speedy turned towards Raven. "I'll call you tomorrow, regular time. If, that's okay."

Raven remained emotionless for a moment, before nodding. "Of course."

**REVIEW PLEASE!!!!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Raven and Speedy's POV's on what's happened so far. I hope this explains why Raven seemed a little bit mean in the last chapter!  
**

**Chapter Five.**

Raven couldn't meditate. As hard as she tried, she just couldn't. The only thing she could focus on was the fact that Speedy had asked her out.

She'd been shocked. No, beyond shocked. Sure, she and Speedy had grown to be good friends, but...he'd asked her out! It just didn't seem possible that anyone would want to ask her out, but he had.

It had scared Raven. Her thoughts had been running everywhere, her emotions started to slide out of control. Then she had fallen back into her cold, emotionless self, and given him a harsh and final refusal.

He'd been great about, but then again, he was great about everything. Raven had been worried that Speedy would stop calling her after she so bluntly gave him her answer. But he still called, and she still looked forward to his calls.

Still, Raven felt horrible about how she had acted. She'd even been mean to Beast Boy which she hadn't done in awhile. Not only that, but she had been secluding herself like she used to do. The moment she'd gotten home she'd retreated into her room and didn't come out until the alarm sounded twelve hours later.

Luckily, Speedy hadn't mentioned what happened even once, and neither did she. It was like the conversation never happened. Well, at least to him. It was more real then ever for her. She still couldn't meditate. Two entire months after it had happened, and she still couldn't meditate!

All her friends had noticed the notable change in her, but only Robin had the actual courage to confront her about it. He'd gotten straight to the point, asking her if anything was wrong, or if he could help her at all. Raven had shook her head no, but the ever-determined Robin had kept on questioning her until finally, Raven had broken down and told him the truth.

Robin had been completely understanding about it. He informed her that it was okay that she had been startled and had retreated back into her old ways.

"Besides," he had said to her. "If he's still calling you, you'll have a chance to do it differently." She had stared at him in a bewildered manner as he stood and left the room.

Raven was standing on the roof with the wind blowing her cloak and hair about her when she realized exactly what Robin had meant. Damn that boy for having the ability to look straight past her mask and guess what she was thinking. Of course, as Raven reflected, it really didn't help that they could easily feel the others' emotions.

She groaned slightly to herself. Raven finally knew what she wanted. She wanted Speedy to ask her out again, to give her a second chance.

Raven mentally cursed herself. She had always wished for love, though she thought she would never experience it. Then, the moment presents itself, she gets a real chance to feel, and she screws it up instantly by transforming into an icy cold half-demon!

Would Speedy ask again? she wondered. She was starting to to wish, in a very un-Ravenlike manner, that he would. And hopefully, if he did, she would be prepared, and respond properly with the correct answer, yes.

xxxxx

The arrow hit the target dead on. At least, it would've been dead on if the archer hadn't been aiming for the target next to the one the arrow hit.

Speedy slapped himself on the head. He jogged over to the ten lined up targets and pulled the arrow out. His aim was completely off. His mind was somewhere else. And Bumblebee would kill him if he didn't get his game together.

He was still thinking about the incident with Raven. He wasn't sure what he had been expecting when he asked her out, but he certainly hadn't expected her to completely block herself off to him. Speedy was fairly certain that she would say no, though he had been hoping to be proved wrong, which was the reason he had asked in the first place.

But the red-head still wanted to talk Raven, so Speedy had been completely relieved when she didn't murder him when he had suggested that he could still call her.

They never mentioned what had happened. He wondered if she even remembered it had. She certainly appeared like she didn't. But maybe she just didn't care. No, Speedy decided, maybe she just didn't want to think about it. From the way she acted, he had caught her completely off guard, and she had acted by pure instinct, which, in Raven's case,was to shut down her emotions and refuse.

Speedy had told Aqualad that he had asked Raven out, and the aquatic prince hadn't been at all astonished. In fact, he told Speedy he'd been expecting this to happen.

"You should try asking her again, in a couple of months, after she gets used to the idea of going out with you," Aqualad had advised him. "She likes you, I know she does." Speedy smiled as he leaned against a rock. He stared at the target in the distance. He would ask her again, and maybe this time, he would get a different answer.

With that thought in his head, Speedy raised his bow, let the arrow fly, and grinned in satisfaction as it hit the target he had been aiming for directly in the middle.

**Sorry this was so short! The next one will be longer! I swear!**

**Review! Review! Review! Review! Review! Review! Review! Review! Review! Review! Review! Review! Review! Review! Review!  
**


	6. Chapter 6

**The next chapter is finally up! Sorry it took so long to get out. This is the final chapter, and because it's a phone conversation, which I'm not very good at writing, it's kind of short, but I hope you enjoy it!  
**

**I wonder how Beast Boy developed his intense liking for tofu.**

**Chapter Six.**

Raven smiled down at the face on her communicator. She flopped down on her bed with her head in her hands, lying on her stomach. Speedy was telling her about a fight with Mumbo Jumbo the Titans East had a couple days ago. He was laughing when he informed her that they had each been turned into animals. Bumblebee was turned into a mouse because the magician said her hair style reminded him of Mickey Mouse, Aqualad was transformed into a starfish, the twins were a rabbit and a turtle, while Speedy had received the privilege of being a weasel.

"Aqualad was being such a pain by the time we managed to catch up with Mumbo that both Bee and I were seriously considering allowing him to remain a starfish. We were both extremely disappointed when he returned to his usual princely self."

"You're cruel," Raven told him.

"I know that the five of you guys like him, but try living with him! Perfect manners, perfect looks, perfect fighting skills, perfect everything! BUMBLEBEE EVEN MADE HIM SECOND IN COMMAND!" Raven made no comment as Speedy went off, once again, into a rant against the aquatic prince. This happened quite often as the archer and Aqualad got into fights more then once a day. They were extremely good friends, but they always managed to get on each other's nerves. Whenever this happened, Aqualad would retreat into his room for a couple of hours, while Speedy would call Raven and launch into a tirade of curses, and tell Raven every single thing Aqualad had done that made him furious.

Raven's mind started wandering as Speedy showed no sign of letting up after ten minutes. Her eyes were fixed on a blank spot on her wall as she began thinking about the what had happened that day, and what the Titans schedule was tomorrow. Robin had planned a day in the park on Starfire and Beast Boy's request. Usually this meant that Beast Boy would be extra annoying. Hopefully she would be in a good mood tomorrow, or the rest of the Titans would not have a good time at the park when they would have to drag a gloomy sorceress with them.

"Raven?" A voice broke into her thoughts.

"Huh?" she blinked, then returned her amethyst eyes to the round object on her bed. "Oh, yeah, you're right!"

This answer left Speedy speechless for a moment. Then, "You think Yamina Wells is hot?"

Raven stared at him. "What?"

"You weren't even listening to me," Speedy accused her.

"Yes I was!"

"So, you think Yamina Wells is..."

"No! I mean...okay, fine. I wasn't listening. How did you get from Aqualad being the world's biggest pain to having Yamina Wells be 'hot?' Just wondering."

"You would know if you had been listening to me!"

"Okay, okay, let's change the subject. I used to think highly of Aqualad, but ever since I started talking to you, I can barely look him in the eye!"

This immediately caught the red-head's interest. "Really? Why?"

"You know, that story you told me. About Aqualad...you know, his first drink?"

Speedy appeared confused for a moment, before his face brightened, and he snorted. "Oh yeah! I remember, we had some beer in the fridge and he thought it was soda or something! Mas y Menos had a heart attack when they found him! And then..."

"I don't need the entire story," interrupted Raven. "I've heard it once. It's a good thing he was at the Tower, or else it would've made the headlines. 'Titans East Aqualad Creates a Splash - Drunk! The Exclusive Peek.' That would be interesting. What?" she added, as she caught Speedy's look.

"Raven, I am so proud of you," he declared.

"Why?"

"You have a sense of humor! I taught you to have a sense of humor within three months! It took three years for me to teach Aqualad the chicken crossing the road joke!"

Raven grinned at him. "You're so...strange!"

"Guilty as charged. Oh, did you hear of that awesome new movie that came out? Aqualad and I have seen it exactly ten times, and we're going again tomorrow. It's about this guy called..." Speedy started chattering about the new movie, talking a million miles an hour, leaving the girl to listen silently.

When Raven had told Starfire that Speedy was the talkative one, the alien found it amusing. And later, when Starfire just happened to mention it to Robin, her leader had laughed out-right. 'The boy talking more then the girl! But this is Raven and Speedy we're talking about - it would be expected,' were his exact words.

Raven's mouth were set in a soft smile as she glanced down at Speedy. She enjoyed their talks. They always managed to find things to talk about. Somehow, he was the day, and she was the night, and yet, they were just like each other. It was strange how she had always thought they were nothing alike, when in truth, they were so similar. And as she felt Speedy's gaze coming to rest on her face again, she knew he really was different then she had thought.

"I told Aqualad that his ego was bigger then the universe."

Raven was snapped out of her reverie. She really did have to start paying more attention. How did they arrive on this subject yet again? "Well," she said instantly, pretending she had been listening all along, "I think that would describe you better then it would him."

"Yeah, well, I usually say that you're the sunniest person in the world," he bantered.

"You're ego is the biggest in the whole world," she repeated.

"You're no fun."

"You're too much fun."

"You're too quick with comebacks."

"You're too slow."

"I hate you."

"I loathe you."

"Hey! C'mon Rae, that's not fair. I said I hate you, but you say you loathe me?"

"Same thing," Raven informed him.

"It isn't. Hate means you...hate the person, and to loathe someone means you...um...loathe them."

"Ooh, good choice of words."

"You know what I mean!"

Raven laughed. " I do," she admitted.

"I am severely hurt by this direct insult."

"I'm dearly sorry. Is there anyway I can make it up to you?"

"Weeeelllllll," the archer drew out the word as he pretended to ponder Raven's suggestion. "How about, you come on a date with me?"

Raven's strong smile wavered slightly, before it slowly slid off her face and she gaped at Speedy. He had just asked her out...again! As the world suddenly welcomed her with a smile and open arms, it barely occurred to her that she was putting a certain red-head through a great time of nervousness as she remained silent.

Speedy was nearly ready to throw up until Raven suddenly looked directly at him, her amethyst eyes boring into his. "Depends on if you're going to take me to the movies or a four-star restaurant."

Speedy's face was a perfect mixture of surprise, bewilderment, and bafflement as the poor boy stared at the girl in the communicator. But, within seconds, his famous, cocky, lop-sided grin broke out on his face as he realized the impact of Raven's words. "Which would you rather go to?"

"The movies, a horror film," she replied without hesitation.

She knew he winked at her as he answered though she couldn't see it. "Good. There's a new one coming out in three days at the Royale Theater in Steele. You can come over to the Tower at about nine, then we can head to the movies, if that's okay with you."

"It's great. Even if Robin suddenly announced that every single criminal in Jump has broken out, I will still be there."

Speedy's eyebrows raised. "I'm looking forward to it even more then you are," he teased her. "The end of the world couldn't keep me away."

If Beast Boy had said this, there would be a new patient in the hospital, but Raven merely chuckled lightly at Speedy's words. "I'm sure you're looking forward to the heart attack Bumblebee will have when you tell her we're going out."

"I'll be in command!"

"Aqualad is second in command," Raven reminded him.

Speedy playfully scowled at her. "Don't ruin the moment Rae," he advised. "I'll met you at nine, my treat."

"I thought _I_ was the one making up to _you_. Not vice versa."

Speedy smiled at her. "You know Rae," he said as stood up. "You're different from what I first thought. It's my treat. I'll see you at nine in three days. Deal?"

"Deal." After two smiles, and final parting words, Raven shut her communicator and rolled over onto her back. The smile that had formed on her lips grew even more as she finally realized exactly what happened.

After a few minutes, Raven stood up, and glanced around the room. Her powers hadn't drifted out of control at all, so no damage had been done. But after Raven's soon to come announcement to the other Titans, the same could not be said to Beast Boy's sanity.

**And there it is! Thank you to my reviewers. This will be the last time I ask you to review. Please do so! **

**I am thinking of continuing this, in a sequel, about Speedy and Raven's progressing relationship, probably starting right after the first date, or during the first date. Tell me what you think. **

**And thank you once again for reading!  
**


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